Face It
by clearpurity2
Summary: It was him. He was here, standing like a ghost from a nightmare, as if the damage he caused meant nothing.
1. Chapter 1

_Yet another piece I wrote about a month ago elsewhere. It takes place between episode 7 and 8 during season 3, primarily after Hibiki ran away from her father. This is just an interpretation of course of the many possibilities that could have happened. But I've always wondered how they, or Miku, managed to find Hibiki or where she ran off to or how Miku thought of the idea to set something up with Hibiki and her father to talk back in Tokyo._

 _So yeah, it's possible I may write a part two to this, been debating it for a while, but for now I'll say this is it. Hope it's enjoyable!_

 ** _I obviously don't own any of the characters._**

* * *

"Hibiki!"

Her friend faded away into the darkness, leaving them with rushed gasps and shoes slapping against concrete. The sound diminished, leaving Miku and the stranger alone in silence. No, he wasn't a stranger anymore, he was a person she remembered as a child. The teenager turned to face him, her eyes taking in every piece of his appearance; his hair has gotten longer while his chin was a bit more rugged due to brief facial hair. This wasn't the man she remembered as a child.

He never turned away from the direction Hibiki ran, forcing Miku to finally speak up.

"You're…mister Tachibana?"  
"Oh, uh," he turned to face her, "…yes. So you are Miku. It's been so long since I've seen you!"  
"Well, um," Miku took a few steps back, "…it has been a while. But will you be here later? I need to go find Hibiki."  
"Of course! I work here overnight so if you need me, just come back. I can't believe that was Hibiki. Wow, how long has it been?"

He continued to ramble on, with a small grin on his face, before Miku turned to run.  
 _'He looked…happy.'_ Seeing it repeat in her mind made Miku run faster.

"Hibiki! Hibiki!" Where did she run off to? It's dark, late, and they were set to leave tomorrow morning. Perhaps she went back to base? With each passing street light, Miku became increasingly worried but refused to stop.

 _'I need to find her. I need to find her. Hibiki, where are you?'_

That man; his name was Akira Tachibana, right? She remembered him being playful, outgoing and positive. Miku believed Hibiki got most of her traits from him but…seeing him now left her conflicted emotions. After learning he left his family, Miku chose to never question Hibiki or her family about it ever again. Hibiki took great lengths to pretend her father was never there in her life, even to the point Miku believed her friend erased him out of her mind entirely.

To watch Hibiki rarely smile during those years was unbearable and to see her run away after seeing him only brought back her concerns. There was a part of Miku that was angry with Hibiki's father; how could he abandon his family at such a crucial time? Why did he choose to do so? Even after seeing him again, it felt as if he didn't seem effected by seeing his daughter run off. Yet at the same time, she believed that staying angry with him wouldn't do any good—it wasn't her place to be angry. It was up to Hibiki…wasn't it? Was she looking into it too much or were her worries well-spent?

Miku paced herself, slowing down to a walk once she saw everyone still on the beach. The firecrackers felt like an afterthought now. Miku failed to realize how heavy she was panting until Kirika poked her right shoulder.  
"Hey, Miku, are you okay? You're out of breath!"  
"Did you run all the way back here?" Shirabe spoke up, standing besides Kirika. Miku lightly smiled, taking the time to finally gather herself.

"I did, but I'm okay. But have you seen Hibiki?"  
"No, we haven't seen her. Didn't you two go to the store together?" Kirika questioned.  
"We did but—"  
"Did that **idiot** eat up the whole store and get in trouble?" That was none other than Chris and even though she couldn't help but chuckle, Miku quickly shook her head.  
"She ran off and I can't find her."  
"Eh? How come?" Kirika dragged while Shirabe nodded her head in agreement.

"I…" Miku stopped; was it wise to tell them the truth? None of them knew about Hibiki's family life and maybe it's the way she wished to keep it. If Hibiki wished to inform them, then she should do it. Miku felt more eyes on her as she stayed silent, finally looking back towards Kirika and Shirabe.  
"I…can't say, but she ran off without me and I can't find her anywhere. I was hoping she came back here but…" It was bubbling to the surface now.  
"Hey, don't worry about it! We'll help you, dess!" Once again, Shirabe nodded her head in agreement with Kirika.

"If there's something wrong, I'm sure she'll be okay and come back soon."  
"Yeah! Like Shirabe said! But in the meantime, we should go look for her!"

Chris snorted.  
"Having you two wandering around late at night doesn't sound like a good idea. Might be wise for you both to stay here."  
"No fair! We can handle ourselves, y'know!" Shirabe furiously nods in agreement while Chris glared at them both.  
"Who the hell cares!? You're going to stay here while _I'll_ go and look for that idiot. She shouldn't be wandering around town at night either, even if she _could_ take care of herself."

Miku watched the faces of Shirabe and Kirika twist in disappointment but it was only for their safety.  
"I'll come with you then," Miku stated, "…it will be easier with two people."  
"No, you should stay here with those two munchkins. I'll try taking senpai and Maria with me instead."  
"But—" Chris placed her hands on both of Miku's shoulders, cutting off her words immediately.

"Whatever the problem is, I'm sure that idiot will only release it to you. So it's better if you stayed here just in case she comes back, okay? That's all." Chris gave a few reassuring pats.  
"Besides, that idiot makes you worry too much. Let us worry about finding her while you relax with them."

Miku hesitated before finally nodding. She knew Chris meant well and wouldn't want to see her constantly worry so maybe it was a better idea for her to stay here.

"Now you two behave while we're gone! Have no time to come back and see you causing problems for Miku!"  
"Yeah, yeah, we know! We're not kids!" Kirika retorted back.  
"That's debatable…"

They went back and forth for a while but Miku didn't listen to the rest. Her mind drifted off into the possible whereabouts of her friend.

 _'Hibiki.'_

* * *

How long has she been out here? It was starting to get cold.

Hibiki brushed her fingers against her knees, removing any left over concrete pebbles from her skin. She's done so well hiding these emotions yet it all came crashing down on her in a moment. Why did she feel this way? Was it because of how he made her feel? He used to be a good person, he had to be in there somewhere but as soon as she saw his face, not a single good memory came into play.

She remembered the yelling, the crying, glass breaking and silence. It had to be the worst part; no one could have a normal conversation with him. He wouldn't listen to anyone, he wouldn't let anyone express how they felt and he wouldn't even _look at her_! Hibiki bit her bottom lip until it bled.

 _'He has to be in there somewhere. He has to be. He can't be the same person. I'm sure he loves us—_ _ **me**_ _.'_

Then why was she overcome with rage? She hasn't even held a conversation with him yet. Either her fingers were shaking from the cold or the brief emotional mess she felt. Is there a reason to be scared? What was she scared of? Perhaps the anger hid her fear. Hibiki held onto her fingers, mumbling carefree words to herself before standing to her feet.

She's been out here for too long—she needed to find Miku. But she wasn't going to head back towards the store; she needed to contact Miku another way. Hibiki sighed, gave her head a shake and wiped her lips. Her face felt dry now.

"It's okay, it's okay. You won't have to see him anymore. You can go back to Tokyo and forget it even happened. Y-Yeah." The idea made her smile and she found it easier to walk back to the beach.

No one was there, fireworks still strewn about in boxes. Where did they go? Maybe it was a good thing; she still felt as if she couldn't face anyone, let alone Miku, after running away like that. The temperature was lower but she felt warmer near the ocean. Maybe she could wash her fears away in the waves.

"Hibiki…"  
Miku's voice almost melted into the sound of the water overlapping each other, preventing Hibiki from hearing her at first. Neither of them spoke and Hibiki broke eye contact first. At least she wasn't with her father. She could hear Miku's feet press against the sand, eventually standing beside her and interlacing their fingers together. The silence felt heavy and Hibiki was afraid to break it but with Miku's tight grip on her hand, Hibiki knew she should speak first.

"I'm sorry I worried you." It's what she caused for Miku far too many times—nothing but worry. Hibiki was grateful that she didn't leave her long ago either.  
"I didn't mean to leave you there. I just…needed to go. That's all."  
"I know." Miku kept her words short and said nothing else. Was she angry? Not like she could blame her—she ran off and left her there—no way a simple sorry could suffice.

The silence between the two was filled with the overlapping waves but didn't make her feel any better. Holding onto Miku's hand almost made her forget what happened.  
"Hibiki," Miku carefully started out, "…I want you to be happy. I don't want to see you upset anymore. I'm going to try and help you, regardless if you want me to or not."

Hibiki turned to see Miku staring at her, forcing her to be stuck in her sights.  
"So please, trust me."  
Hibiki curled her free hand into a fist to prevent it from shaking; it was obvious what Miku wished to do. She didn't want to do it. She didn't want to face it again. But—

"I trust you." Hibiki said with shaky lips, tasting the blood in her mouth all over again.


	2. Chapter 2

_Since the website never showed my comments, I had to re-upload the chapter. Lol._

 _So I chose to make a part two. It still takes place between episodes 7 and 8 but ends with the very beginning of 8. Again, I'm sure there are plenty of ways to go about it and this one of the ways I imagined it. So, yeah, here it is!_

* * *

" _So please, trust me."_

"… _I trust you."_

Miku's fingers hovered over the phone, the buttons rubbing against her skin. Was this a good idea? Would it be wise to go through with this? She said she trusted her with this decision yet Miku could feel her friend's hand trembling from those words. Hibiki was scared, it was easy to tell, and it felt difficult to even make _this_ choice. It was to help her, to help Hibiki feel whole again. But was it respectable of her to put her friend through this much stress?

Each passing thought prevented her from calling and eventually, Miku closed her phone. It was impossible to sleep but she urged Hibiki to do just that. Miku didn't want her to worry about it, even if it meant simply lying down to avoid it for a few more hours. The teenager sat down in the living area of the house they were staying in; it was very comfortable and relaxing to be here despite the circumstances. The couch was soft enough for Miku to think she would eventually sink down and have trouble getting out of it.

It was such a random thought. Why even think of something like it?

Miku shifted her body to lean her back closer against the arm of the chair, making sure to keep a firm hold on her phone. No matter what, she needed to respond back to Mr. Tachibana, and give him the possibility of speaking with his daughter.

"Why are you hesitating?" A voice spoke out of her field of vision. As the sudden visitor walked closer, her eyes caught a glimpse of snow-like hair, belonging to no one else but Chris.  
"O-Oh, Chris, you're up?"

She was eating a popsicle, strangely late at night, but it shouldn't be as important to question.  
"Yeah, of course. I find myself staying up too late sometimes and tonight just so happens to be one of them." Chris sat down next to Miku with a sudden _'plop!'_ that made Miku nearly jump.  
"So what's happening? You didn't answer my question." She wasted no time getting to the point.

"You asked me why I am hesitating. What do you mean?"  
"You know exactly what I mean. Miku, you're smart, so don't you think it's just best to be honest?"

Miku kept her fingers wrapped around the phone like a vice, as if she felt afraid to let it go. A single phone call could change what's been damaged for years and it was nerve-wracking to make such a choice for someone who she cared for deeply.  
"I'm…worried that it won't work out. I'm worried that if I do make this call, I'll be putting Hibiki through something she's afraid of doing. I want her to be happy, but I don't want to cause her any unnecessary problems either."

Miku rambled far longer than she thought, eventually glancing towards her light-haired friend.

"I'm sorry. It's silly."

Chris made a _'pop!'_ sound with her lips as she shifted her position.  
"I'm terrible with bringing people up, I'm sure you know that, but let me tell you my opinion. Do it. I don't know a _thing_ about what her father did or how their life was before all this, but if you want to make things better, why hesitate? You won't know until you try, right?" Chris leaned back, looking away before mumbling. "…At least that's what I've been told…"

The answer sounded simple and Miku was normally one to come to such a conclusion quickly. But something about this situation required someone else's opinion and she was grateful that it was Chris. Miku smiled to show her appreciation.

"Thank you, Chris, I'm grateful to have you to talk with."  
Chris took a few more bites of her popsicle, coughing quietly at Miku's words until she could swallow the cold substance properly.

"Y-Yeah, well, no problem. But if something happens to make that idiot upset, you better prevent me from finding that idiot's father or I might end up shooting him."

Miku's smiled widened at the gesture. Though she knew Chris wouldn't shoot anyone, to hear the concern she showed for Hibiki always pleased her.

"I'll make sure everything works out. I'm sure it will."

They held a conversation much longer than they thought, the end result causing Miku to call Hibiki's father. He sounded excited about the idea, eager to catch up with his daughter and see if they could talk things over. He sounded persistent and ready to go in head-first.

Maybe this wasn't a bad idea.

Maybe it will turn out okay.

* * *

She didn't want to go to sleep but she didn't wish to stay up either. The bed beside her was empty, making it obvious that Miku wasn't there. Her fingers gripped onto the covers as if they would erase the thoughts in her mind.

' _It's okay, Miku knows what she's doing. There's no need to be afraid. Everything will turn out fine, yes, just fine.'_  
It only made her fear escalate. What if he's exactly the same when he left? Does he _really_ care about meeting up and talking? And then what would they even talk about? It's not as if he would be interested in hearing about her school life, and even if he did, it wouldn't make sense for them to avoid the true problem at hand.

There's no way it would work.

There's no way they could talk normally.

Hibiki avoided it for a reason and she wasn't ready to speak about it out of the blue. She shouldn't feel this way. She shouldn't feel so **angry**. And yet she did, her fists shaking, heart pulsating.  
"Miku knows what she's doing. She's looking out for me, I can't…break my promise. I can't make her worry."

" _You should rest, Hibiki, you look tired."  
"Miku, I'm fine, really!"  
"Your eyes say differently. I'll worry about this, okay? Get some rest."_

Hibiki rubbed her face, preventing anything to fall. Miku opted to deal with everything and give her the chance to sleep so she needed to take advantage of the opportunity. Ignore everything only for a few more hours.

"It's okay. Everything's fine. It's okay. Everything's fine." The words were her comfort until she fell asleep.

Her dreams were empty, dark, and filled with nothing. No faces were filled in nor were any voices provided. Hibiki felt alone and distant from everything and had no idea why. It's been so long since she's felt this way, and it's something she never wanted to feel again. Her emotions felt overwhelming, drowning out her happiness and optimism to simply fill her with dread.

"Hibiki. Hibiki!"

There was light in her eyes as she groaned to hide her head under the covers.  
"Nnngh…"

"Hibiki, you have to get up. It's time to go."

It was none other than Miku that came to fetch her. Hibiki opened her eyes further, her arms wrapped around a pillow. Did she miss Miku _that_ much?

"Your clothes are already set out," she heard Miku state while Hibiki finally sat up, "…so all you have to do is put them on and we can be on our way."

Hibiki quickly set aside the pillow and hopped out of bed, hoping it would break her drowsiness. Right, today was the day they would head back to Tokyo and back to school. No more training, especially after Maria defeated one of the Autoscorers. It only meant more of them would eventually come.

It took no time to get dressed and as she fixed her hair, Miku's voice chimed in like a whisper.

"I set up a meeting with your father at that restaurant near school. I believe it to be called _'Bale'_ something. So, after school, that's where he said he'll meet you."

Silence followed. Her father. It came back again as Hibiki did everything in her power to prove that Miku's attempt to help wasn't the source of these emotions. And so she forced herself to speak.

"Oh? That place has great food! I'm sure it will be nice." Her words didn't seem to get across since Miku's expression carried the same concern she did yesterday. Hibiki took hold of her hands and grinned, perhaps a bit harder than she ever has before.

"Don't worry, it's okay! Everything will work out! Isn't that what you told me? You did all the hard work, you don't have to worry about me!" Even with her reassurance, and if Miku could see through it or not, her friend's expression slightly changed to a more positive one.  
"So come on! Let's head out there so we won't make everyone wait!" Hibiki eagerly spoke as she pulled Miku outside where everyone gathered.

Kirika waved eagerly at the two, Shirabe equally smiling at her side.  
"Good morning, sleepy head!" Kirika chimed.  
"You slept in really late."

"Ehe, yeah, I got enough sleep so I'm ready to go! Sorry for making you all wait."

Tsubasa crossed her arms with a grin.  
"It's fine, Tachibana. We've been down this road before, haven't we?"

Hibiki chuckled but chose to say nothing more. Thank goodness they had a submarine for easy travel but it made her think; how would he come to Tokyo? Did he have his own transportation? She chose not to ask in fear of bringing up the topic again. Her fingers tapped against her knees, ignoring the random conversations she heard around her.

She's officially going to meet her father. It _never_ crossed her mind this would be a possibility. For now, it was best to keep this information to herself, especially away from her mother and grandmother. She already caused enough stress for them, no need to add any more.

"Hey, are you okay? You've been so quiet!" Kirika sat down on a seat next to her, grinning the whole time.

"Speaking of which, we didn't get a chance to see you last night. Glad you're safe." Shirabe added.

They knew she was gone? Pft, of course they did, she was certain Miku was concerned so they opted to look for her. How could her little stunt go unmissed? Hibiki thought of what to give as an answer, glancing at the two with their curious eyes.

"Um, y-yeah! I'm okay! I'm probably still a bit tired. Need to wake myself up somehow!"

A barrel of chuckles erupted from her gut as she was certain they would know how fake it sounded. Surprisingly, they laughed with her, Kirika obviously much louder than Shirabe.

"Guess that means we should help you with that, right?" Kirika gave Hibiki a smile as Shirabe nodded in agreement.

They've come a long way and Hibiki felt grateful that the two were even willing to try and help her out. And so, she took up their offer, doing anything she could to play off the fear that was building up within her.

But the harder she tried, the more eyes she felt watching her every move.

* * *

It felt nice to be back inside their dorms, the rooms still looking the way they left it. Not as if anyone would come in and suddenly change everything but it was reassuring to have someone looking out for them.

Hibiki had been silent the whole ride home, except for when Shirabe and Kirika forced her away from her thoughts but even so, Miku could see through her façade. And now that Chris slightly knew about the details, she noticed it too. Maria and Tsubasa knew very limited details as well and they all agreed to not speak about it to Shirabe and Kirika.

Was this a good idea? No, couldn't be any time to second-guess herself when everything was set. Hibiki would meet with her father today, right after school, and this would be the test.

Hibiki continued to be non-talkative throughout the whole school day, focusing in class and hardly falling asleep. If anything, she would end up staring out the window and disregard everything. It couldn't be okay. Miku could already see her attempt at helping fail.

As her friend silently placed her books away, Miku stepped beside her desk.  
"Maybe I shouldn't have done that."

"That isn't true," Hibiki quickly regarded, "…thanks to you, I decided to face it, rather than run away."

"Really?"

"Really! Thanks, Miku."

Hibiki stood to her feet with that ever present grin on her face. It reminded Miku of why she chose to do this in the first place and seeing it made her smile in return. She always wanted to protect that smile.

"Sure."

She could hear Hibiki jogging towards the exit, making sure to look up and see her friend smile and wave in her direction.

"Okay, I'll be going! You go home without me!"

And as her footsteps faded, Miku watched that familiar smile carefully.

It didn't feel the same.


End file.
